CHANDLER, Ariz. - An Arizona woman is facing a charge of attempted first-degree murder after she allegedly tampered with her husband’s IV following a surgical procedure.

Police say the 66-year-old man had been admitted to Chandler Regional Hospital on Thursday for the procedure and when it was done he was in recovery, with his wife, 65-year-old Rose Mary Vogel, in the room with him.

Police report that the warning alarm on the monitoring machines sounded, alerting the hospital staff there was a problem in the room.

When staff checked on the man, they found his wife manipulating the IV.

Staff inspected the IV and found it had a brown substance in the line and immediately removed it from the man’s arm.

Vogel tried to drain the fluid from the line into a waste basket, but a nurse intervened, according to police. The substance was tested in their lab and found to contain fecal matter.

Police say Vogel was arrested for aggravated assault.

Police say a search of her purse revealed three more syringes, two of which contained fluid and the third appeared to have trace amounts of fecal matter inside.

The charges against Vogel have since been upgraded to attempted first-degree murder, according to police. She is also facing a charge of vulnerable adult abuse.

Police say the victim is expected to survive but remains in the hospital, recovering from the surgical procedure and the attempt on his life.

Police say at this time they don’t know why Vogel was injecting fluids into her husband’s IV. The case remains open and the investigation is ongoing, police say.

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